Infinite Horizon Book 2: Twilight
by Exdeathmore
Summary: Part 2 of 3. A multi-series crossover, revolving around the Nanoha series, and inspired by the SRW franchise. Chapter 4 - The Dusk Zone strikes again, and Lina Inverse has an encounter that will forever change her life!
1. Prologue

**Infinite Horizon Book 2: Twilight**

**by Exdeathmore**

* * *

><p><strong>SPOILER ALERT!<strong> This prologue contains spoilers pertaining to Inifnite Horizon Book 1: Dawn, which is still in progress. If you do not want to be spoilered, then avert your eyes!

* * *

><p>There are an endless number of worlds, contained within their own dimensions. Some are endlessly close in detail, yet infinitely far in distance, while others are completely unique in their nature and origins. The Infinite Horizon...<p>

It has been six months since the climax of what would be known as the First Infinite Horizon Crisis. Nanoha Takamachi, aided by the heroes of other worlds, journeyed throughout the universe in search of the 21 Jewel Seeds. United, they stood against many foes and adversaries, such as Precia Testarossa, Commander Lucifer of the Demonkind, and the Dark King of the Dusk Zone. These events led to a final confrontation with the Zukunft Regisseur, an enigmatic being that sought to bring absolute order to all worlds using the heroes' power. This "Future Ruler" was defeated, and Nanoha and the others returned to their respective homeworlds to resume their normal lives.

Or so they thought...

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS<strong>

It has only been six months in Nanoha Takamachi's world since she bid farewell to her comrades and forged a friendship with Fate Testarossa. Now, a new enemy has appeared. The Wolkenritter, guardian knights of a Lost Logia known only as the Book of Darkness, are collecting various forms of energy to fill the book's pages with power, but the reason is unknown.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector FN<strong>

The Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City rages on. Shiro Emiya, Rin Tohsaka, and Saber have defeated Shinji Matou's Rider and Ilyasviel von Einzbern's Berserker, but at the cost of Archer's life. There are still three remaining enemy Servants in the city, and one of them, Caster, has begun taking drastic measures to ensure her victory.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MH<strong>

Nagisa Misumi and Honoka Yukishiro have returned to their normal school lives after the defeat of the Dark King and the destruction of the Dusk Zone. However, in his dying breath, the Dark King dealt a fatal blow to the Queen of the Garden of Light, causing her to revert to her original form: her life, heart, and 12 fragments of her will, the Heartiels. To make matters worse, more disciples of the darkness have appeared, with the intention of once again resurrecting the Dark King so that his power can consume the universe.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector CY<strong>

Love Momozono lives a happy, carefree life in Clover Town with her two friends, Miki Aono and Inori Yamabuki. However, her world soon becomes the target of the denizens of Labyrinth, who seek to enslave all other worlds in the name of their ruler, Moebius. Two fairies from the Kingdom of Sweets, Tarte and Chiffon, have come to Love's world in search of the legendary warriors, Pretty Cure, to help stop the ambitions of Labyrinth.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector RZ<strong>

Maria Hikari has returned to her life as a normal teenager, despite learning about her true nature. With the W Virus cured, and the disappearance of Dr. Wily, it seems that peace has finally come. Advances in technology have led to the creation of the next generation of robots, with the ability to feel and think like humans, the Reploids. However, things begin to get out of hand as Reploids around the world begin to rebel against humanity. Calling themselves Mavericks, they seek not only freedom from their creators, but the subjugation of all humans.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector RE<strong>

Lina Inverse has resumed her regular routine of travelling the world and defeating the occasional bandit gang in search of her fortune, accompanied by the swordsman Gourry Gabriev. Her path would be deterred, much to her dismay, when she encounters an enigmatic demon named Xellos, which foreshadows a sinister plot to plunge her world into chaos...

* * *

><p><strong>Sector WN<strong>

In a pre-WWII instance of Earth, before the events of World War II can unfold, Earth is suddenly invaded by an outside force. Known only as the Neuroi, they indiscriminately attack everything in their way, carving a path of destruction throughout Europe. The conventional weapons of that time are highly ineffective against the Neuroi, which has forced the nations of the world to devise a new tactic: the use of young women who are endowed with the ability to use magic, called Witches.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector TT<strong>

The Teen Titans continue their fight against the superpowered villains of their world. Along the way, they encounter a girl named Terra, who has the ability to manipulate and control stone and the earth itself, but has extreme difficulty controlling the power itself. While the Titans see a new friend, their nemesis, Slade, sees a new potential apprentice...

* * *

><p><strong>Sector ZZ<strong>

The world is a desolate waste. The surface has been forever charred by the aftermath of a worldwide nuclear war. Humanity has attempted to rebuild their society from the ruins, but it is a shadow of its former self. Crime and corruption run rampant as gangs, megacorporations, and military alike struggle for control of a unique substance, Lazarium, which is heavily protected by mutant creatures, the Lazarites. Amidst the chaos, there are rumors of a roaming mercenary who will take any paying job, carving out his own path to survival...

* * *

><p>The stage has been set... the twilight is approaching, and only these heroes can open the path to the future...<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Series List (pending)<strong>

Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's (central story)

Fate/stay night (continuation)

Pretty Cure Max Heart

Fresh Pretty Cure!

Rockgirl (continuation)

Slayers Next

Strike Witches

Teen Titans (continuation)

? ? ? (original characters)

* * *

><p><strong>Note from the Author<strong>**:** If you are wondering why I am already starting the second part of the series before finishing the first, it is because the ideas in my head for this story are fresh, and I want to get them written down before I lose my train of thought.


	2. Once More, the Storm of Battle Part 1

**Infinite Horizon Book 2: Twilight**

**by Exdeathmore**

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> All series are the intellectual property of their owners, etcetera, and all that jazz. Original characters are of my design, and I won't be too happy if someone uses them without my permission and/or tries to claim them as their own. Some German translations were done via Google Translate. It is recommended that this story be read in 1/2 width.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 1: Once More, the Storm of Battle (Part 1)<strong>

**Sector MS, Uminari City, Nakaoka Town**

It was nighttime. Inside a darkened house, not a soul was stirring, save for one. A little girl, with blue eyes and short brown hair, rolled down a corridor in a wheelchair, towards an answering machine sitting on a small table. She reached out and pressed a large blinking button.

"_You have one message,_" the machine said in a monotone voice.

"Hello?" A female voice began speaking through the machine. "This is Dr. Ishida from Uminari University Hospital. So, your birthday's finally tomorrow, Hayate. I was wondering if you'd like to go out for a bite to eat after tomorrow's examination. It would be great if you could reply before coming in tomorrow. I'll be waiting, then." The machine let out a soft beep.

"_End of messages._" Hayate smiled softly before reaching down to the wheels on either side of her, turning the chair around and slowly pushing herself towards a small bed. Carefully, she lifted herself from the wheelchair, sliding across the matress and laying down. Turning towards an end table, she grabbed a book resting on it, turned on a lamp, and began reading. She looked at her clock, noticing the hands about to converge on the 12 mark.

"It's almost midnight..." she whispered to herself before returning her gaze to the book. Within seconds, the clock struck midnight. Suddenly, a strange light began to shine behind her, slowly growing in intensity. Although it lit up the room, the light gave off a black aura. Hayate turned around to see the source of the light: a large, brown book, adorned with gold markings, bound shut by a large chain, sitting on a bookshelf opposite of the bed. The air around the tome seemed to warp as the light continued becoming brighter. The room began to tremble as the book lifted itself from the bookshelf, slowly approaching Hayate. The book seemed alive, throbbing like a beating heart, pushing out against the chains, until finally, the chains shattered. The book swung open, flipping through a multitude of blank pages, each leaf giving off its own black glow.

"_L__oslassen dichtung__ (Releasing seal),_" came a robotic voice, speaking in a foreign tongue. Hayate backed away from the book, nearly frozen with fear. "_Aktivierung (Activating)__._" A golden cross on the book's cover began emitting a golden light, until the entire room was consumed in white.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Uminari City, Takamachi Residence<strong>

"Nanoha, you have mail!" Nanoha's brother Kyouya called out to her, holding a brown envelope.

"Really?" Nanoha ran up to him, excited.

"It's from overseas. Looks like it's from this 'Fate Testarossa' again." Kyouya handed Nanoha the envelope.

"You've been getting a lot of letters from that girl," Nanoha's sister Miyuki commented. "Is it another video letter?"

"I'm sure it is!" Nanoha replied with a smile.

"You two have been exchanging letters for more than half a year, now," said Nanoha's father, "but none of your other friends have written you?"

"Yes, I've been wondering how that nice young man and his girlfriend have been doing," Nanoha's mother added. "I wonder if those two will get married?"

"You mean Raziel and Kurumi?" Nanoha asked. "I'm... sure they're doing great..." Her voice began trailing off. "Ah, excuse me!" She ran off to her room in a hurry. Inside her room, she placed the envelope on her desk, next to a small stack of discs and a picture frame. In the picture was Nanoha, surrounded by all her friends from other dimensions she had encountered during her adventures.

"Raziel... Kurumi... Maria... Saber... Nagisa... Everyone..." Nanoha mumbled to herself, looking down.

* * *

><p>Six months have passed in Nanoha Takamachi's world since she returned after saying farewell to her comrades. Although she finally befriended the once-solitary girl Fate Testarossa, their time together was cut short when she turned herself in to the Time-Space Administration Bureau. Although they were separated, they continue to write letters to eachother. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about the other friends Nanoha had made along the way. Although they have been allowed to keep their communication devices as keepsakes, the TSAB has disabled them in order to maintain their policy on preventing interactions between separated worlds.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Uminari City, Urban District<strong>

That night, high above the city, two figures hover in place. One is a little girl, with deep blue eyes and red hair tied into pigtails, wearing what appears to be a red leather dress and beret. In her right hand she helds a thin, slender mallet, hoisted over her shoulder. Standing behind her is a taller, slightly older-looking man, with short black hair, draped over his face, revealing only his left gray eye. The man was clad in a pitch-black robe, adorned with six large, coffin-shaped shoulderpads, three on each side. Under his left arm, he carries a large, brown book, adorned with gold markings, a golden cross on the cover. The two stared down at the city beneath them, looking for something.

"Well, Vita?" the man addressed the red-haired girl. "Have you found it?"

"The source feels like it's here, yet not here..." the girl replied. "The source of that oddly massive amount of magical power I've been sensing fairly recently..."

"If we could acquire this source, we could easily fill another twenty pages of the Book. I admit, I am quite curious as to what this 'source' could be. This world is quite the backwater place in terms of magical aptitude."

"Focus on the task at hand," Vita said to the man in black. "This isn't a field trip. We aren't here so you can play scholar."

"Of course. Our job is too important for idle distractions. We should split up and search. I will take the Book of Darkness with me." Vita simply nodded in response. The man then flew off in one direction, Vita remaining in place. She swung her hammer, holding it out in front of her. A glowing red triangle stretched out beneath her.

"Barrier Field, expand," she uttered.

"_Gefängnis der Magie (Magical Prison),_" a male robotic voice came from the hammer. A sphere of warped space appeared, expanding rapidly until it began to envelop the city. As the edge of the sphere passed over people, they faded away, leaving the area empty and barren.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Takamachi Residence, Nanoha's Room<strong>

At that time, Nanoha was in her room, busily writing in her diary, with Raising Heart by her side, sitting on a soft cloth.

"_Caution. Emergency,_" the device suddenly said, sparkling. Just then, the atmosphere in the house shifted, filling Nanoha with a familiar sensation that caused her to stand straight up.

"A barrier! ?" She gasped.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Uminari City, Urban District<strong>

Vita was deep in meditation, her eyes closed. In her mind, she saw a bright flash. She quickly opened her eyes.

"A magical reaction!" she said. "I've finally found it!" She swung her hammer out to her side. "Let's go, Graf Eisen."

"_Jawohl (Roger)!_" The hammer responded. Vita rushed off into the distance, leaving a red streak of light behind her.

'I've found our target,' Vita communicated telepathically with someone. 'Meet up with me, and make sure the Book is ready to receive the energy we harvest.'

'Understood,' the voice of the man from before echoed in her head. 'I will contact the others, just to be safe. One can never be too careful.'

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Takamachi Residence, Nanoha's Room<strong>

"_Target is approaching at high speed,_" Raising Heart informed Nanoha.

"It's coming closer?" Nanoha asked, looking out the window. She looked down at her device, and took a deep breath.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Uminari City, Urban District<strong>

Nanoha headed downtown, and climbed to the roof of one of the skyscrapers to get a better view of the city. She looked up, and saw what appeared to be a red star twinkling in the sky. Upon closer observation, she realized it wasn't a star, but a metal sphere, headed straight for her. Nanoha immediately held out her hand, creating a barrier. The metal ball collided with a resounding crash, forcing Nanoha back. Just then, Vita approached her from behind, swinging her mallet.

"Tödliche Strafe (Deadly Punishment)!" Vita shouted. Nanoha tried to create another shield with her other hand, but all for naught. The weapon struck the shield, the sheer force behind it knocking Nanoha off her feet and over the edge of the roof. Just then, the man in black arrived, stopping next to Vita.

"I believe you may have overdone it," he commented. "It's only a child, after all. Not as sturdy as the other targets we've had."

* * *

><p>Below, Nanoha continued to plummet, clutching her injured hand. "Raising Heart, please!" she cried out. The red jewel around her neck began to glow.<p>

"_Standby. Ready. Set up._" Nanoha's descent slowed down as she was enveloped in a gentle pink globe of light. In an instant, her clothes were replaced with her Barrier Jacket, and the jewel transformed into her staff.

* * *

><p>Back on the roof, Vita and the man watched the spectacle unfold.<p>

"It seems I spoke too soon," he said. "Allow me." The shoulderpads on the right side of his robe detached, and began floating in front of him. "Graves, linear formation." The coffin-shaped objects aligned themselves, forming a row. The man threw out his arm, pointing at Nanoha. Suddenly, one of the devices shot forward like a bullet. It struck the globe surrounding Nanoha, the impact causing the barrier to detonate, and creating a large cloud of smoke. Vita charged towards the cloud, swinging her weapon at it, only to hit nothing but the air. She looked to her right to see Nanoha flying away. Both she and the man gave chase.

"I don't remember doing anything to provoke you like this!" Nanoha shouted at the two, stopping and turning to face them. "Where did you come from? Why are you doing this?"

"..." They both remained silent as they stopped a short distance away. The three remaining shoulderpads on the man's robe detached as well, as all six objects hovered just above him.

"If you won't tell me, how am I supposed to know! ?" Behind the two strangers, two bolts of pink light appeared, ready to strike both of them. The man turned around to see the incoming attack, and swerved out of the way, barely avoiding it. Vita also turned, choosing to block the bolt with her weapon instead. She started to become frustrated, turning back to face Nanoha.

"You little twerp!" she shouted, charging at Nanoha again, rearing her hammer back for another swing.

"_Flash Move._" Before the attack could connect, Nanoha flew away at incredible speed, stopping beneath both of her attackers. "_Shooting Mode._" Raising Heart's shape shifted as Nanoha aimed it at the man in black. Magic circles appeared around the staff's head as pink light began to gather at its tip. "_Divine..._"

"Listen... to me!" Nanoha shouted.

"_...Buster._" The collected energy was released into a beam. The man was surprised as the attack headed towards him. The six devices around him flew in front of him, the broad ends connecting to eachother, forming a six-pronged flower shape. A shield immediately erected itself, taking the full force of the attack. The beam began breaking off into smaller beams, rushing past him and heading towards Vita. One of the smaller beams grazed her, knocking off her hat. She turned to see it falling to the streets below, singed and tattered. She was overcome with rage as she faced Nanoha, growling. Vita swung her hammer several times, forming another red magic triangle beneath her. The man looked up, and immediately flew away, as if he knew what was about to happen.

"Graf Eisen, Cartridge Load!" Vita screamed.

"_Explosion._" A cylinder near the head of the hammer slid down the shaft, revealing a hollow chamber underneath. The cylinder slid back up like a piston, slamming shut, releasing steam. "_Raketen-Form (Missile Form)._" The hammer's head began to twist and contort, reshaping itself into what looked like a miniature rocket with a pointed tip.

"Raketen (Rocket)..." Vita uttered. The booster on the hammer's head ignited as Vita began swinging around in place, gripping her weapon with both hands. Suddenly, she rushed at Nanoha at breakneck speed, swinging furiously. "...Hammer!" Nanoha raised a shield in front of her, but it only lasted several seconds before shattering under the force of the blow. The weapon continued, striking Nanoha's staff, the violent vibrations of the rocket chipping away at the device. With one more push, Nanoha was sent careening towards another building, crashing through the windows and disappearing inside. The man returned, stopping in front of Vita, his six Graves reattaching themselves to his robe.

"Wait," he said, motioning for Vita to stop. "I will finish this. Recover your hat. If you lost it, our master would be worried."

"But she...!" Vita tried to object, but was met by a stern glare. Vita gritted her teeth, took a deep breath, and let out a sigh. She quietly nodded, and flew off. The man headed towards the hole in the building.

* * *

><p>Inside, he saw Nanoha, cringing in the corner of the room, coughing. He slowly walked towards her, the shards of broken glass underfoot crackling with every step. A single Grave detached from his right shoulder as he grabbed it from the wide end. A purple blade of light shot out of the narrow end, emitting a low humming sound. Nanoha tried to run, but lacked the strength to do so. He swung at her with the blade.<p>

"_Protection._" Raising Heart created a shield to absorb the blow, but in its weakened state, the result was feeble. The purple blade carved through it, slicing Nanoha's Barrier Jacket. The upper half of her Barrier Jacket dissolved into nothing, reverting back to her school uniform shirt, knocking her back into the wall. The man continued to approach. Nanoha, barely able to move, continued to aim her crumbling staff at him in defiance, but she could not muster the strength for another attack.

"Sorry, little girl," the man said, raising his blade. "This just wasn't your lucky day."

'Is it all going to end like this...?' Nanoha thought to herself, her vision blurring. 'No... Yuuno... Chrono... Fate!' She shut her eyes, waiting for her inevitable end.

_CLASH!_

Several seconds passed, nothing happened. Nanoha opened her eyes, and looked up to see a familiar shape. Standing in front of her was Fate Testarossa, blocking the man's weapon with her device, Bardiche, slowly pushing his arm back.

"Sorry we're late, Nanoha," came a voice from behind Nanoha as a small hand rested on her shoulder. She turned to see another friendly face, that of Yuuno Scrya.

"Yuuno..." Nanoha managed to squeak out.

"More children... comrades?" the man grunted as he leapt back.

"_Scythe Form,_" Bardiche stated as Fate swung her device, the axe-head swinging up, a yellow crescent-shaped blade appearing from it.

"No, not comrades..." Fate said in a soft, yet stern voice. "We're friends."


	3. Once More, the Storm of Battle Part 2

**Infnite Horizon Book 2: Twilight**

**by Exdeathmore**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 2: Once More, the Storm of Battle (Part 2)<strong>

**Sector MS, Uminari City, Urban District**

"Using magic to attack a civilian..." Fate said, facing off against the man who tried to attack Nanoha. "This crime cannot be considered a mere misdemeanor."

"And who are you supposed to be?" the man asked. "This is none of your business, child, so I suggest you step aside."

"Time-Space Administration Bureau temporary agent, Fate Testarossa. If you don't resist, you will be granted the chance to plead in your own defense. If you consent to these conditions, drop your weapon."

"..." The man raised his hands, dropping the Grave to the floor with a metallic clang, bowing his head in defeat. Suddenly, he looked back at Fate, a faint smile on his face.

"Look out, Fate!" Nanoha cried out. "He's–!" Just then, the remaining Graves on the man's robes detached and aimed at Fate, unleashing a volley of purple bolts. Fate quickly raised a shield to protect herself and her friends as they were drowned in a cloud of smoke. He flew backwards out of the building the way he came, the Graves following closely behind. With a single swing of her device, Fate cleared the smoke away just in time to watch him escape.

"Yuuno, I'll leave Nanoha with you!" Fate said.

"Right!" Yuuno nodded as Fate gave chase. He held out his hands in front of Nanoha, and began to concentrate, creating a green sphere of light that gave off a soothing pulse. Nanoha could feel the pain from her injuries slowly fading away with every pulse. "In case you were wondering, Nanoha, Fate's trial ended, so everyone was trying to get in touch with you. The signal wouldn't get through for some reason, and once we checked into it, we saw that a wide-area barrier had been forged over the city. We got here as soon as we could."

"I see..." Nanoha said, still having a little difficulty speaking. "I'm sorry for worrying you like this... thank you..."

"Who was that man? Why was he after you?"

"I don't know... he just came at me from nowhere... he's not alone, there's another..."

"It's going to be okay now. Fate's here, and so is Arf."

"Arf is here, too?"

* * *

><p>Outside, Fate was standing off against the man in the black robe. She readied her weapon. "Bardiche!" she signaled to it.<p>

"_Arc Saber._" The yellow blade extended, and with a wide swing, she released it, hurling it at him. The attack struck head-on, he didn't even attempt to block it. When the smoke cleared, he was still standing, the shape of his body warping and slightly fading. Fate barely noticed a coffin-shaped object inside his body before it regained form.

"A Fake Silhouette?" Fate gasped, realizing that she only attacked an illusion. Just then, four Graves shot out from behind the illusionary man, on a collision course with her. Fate flew away to avoid them, but the Graves altered their trajectory, continuing to pursue her. Behind one of the buildings, the real man was floating in place, focusing on guiding his devices.

"Barrier Break!" a voice shouted out. The man immediately turned around to see Arf, in humanoid form, rushing towards him, fist extended, electricity sparking from it. He took his last remaining Grave and held it out in front of him, forming a smaller barrier than his last. Arf's attack connected, and eventually, the shield gave way, breaking apart. Her fist struck the Grave, causing it to crack and shatter, the explosion knocking him away. At that moment, the Graves chasing Fate stopped, and flew away in another direction, heading for the place where Arf and the man in black were fighting.

"You will pay for that," he calmly said as the Graves arrived, floating around him. With a flick of his arm, the remote weapons began to bombard Arf, forcing her to weave through a hail of purple bullets. He was so focused on hitting Arf, that he did not notice Fate approaching from behind, who swung her scythe, ready to strike. Before she could, Vita rushed in between the two, blocking Fate's attack with her hammer. Merak turned around to see what just happened. "It certainly took you long enough," he said to Vita. "As you can see, there have been complications."

'Matching blows like this is easy enough,' Vita replied telepathically, 'but there's no point in dragging this out! We have to hurry and take their energy.'

'Agreed. Any suggestions? This familiar already destroyed one of my Graves.'

'I only have two cartridges left. I'll deal with this one, if you can take the familiar.'

'I can, and will. There is one more of them, with the target. We will deal with him after these two.' They split up, each taking one opponent to different parts of the area, separating them.

* * *

><p>Nanoha and Yuuno could do nothing but watch as the four fighters clashed, Vita against Fate, the black-robed man against Arf.<p>

"Even Arf came for me..." Nanoha felt helpless, standing on the sidelines.

"Chrono and the crew of the Asura are doing everything they can on their end, as well," Yuuno explained.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Asura Bridge<strong>

The crew of the Asura was working frantically, trying to gain an assessment of the situation unfolding on the planet, but all the montiors displayed nothing but static.

"Haven't you been able to break though the barrier, yet?" Lindy asked one of the crewmembers.

"Just a little longer until we complete our analysis," the officer replied. "We're going as fast as we can!" Another display appeared, scrolling through lines of inscrutable text.

"These equations are all wrong. This barrier... it isn't a Midchilda-type. What kind of magic is this?"

"Captain!" Amy called out to Lindy. "We're detecting an anomaly from inside the barrier! Analyzing..." After a few seconds, Amy gasped in shock. "These readings... it's...!"

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Uminari City, Urban District<strong>

Fate and Vita's fight went on, matching eachother's attacks with equal strength.

"Why you...!" Vita charged at Fate again, but was brought to a screeching halt as several rings of light appeared, wrapping themselves around Vita's wrists and ankles. She looked around, and saw Arf in the distance, using a binding spell against her. "Grr, what is he doing?" she grunted, struggling to break free.

"This is the end for you," Fate said, pointing Bardiche at her. "State your name and the world you hail from." Before she could continue, the ground began to quake. The vibrations were so powerful, it even reached the airborne mages. "What's happening?" Fate looked around, looking for the cause.

"This feeling... it can't be!" Arf gasped. "It's a dimensional rift! Look out, Fate! Something's coming!" Just then, the sky above them lit up. In a bright flash of white light, three large objects appeared above them. They appeared to be aircrafts of some sort, composed of a sleek, black substance with a honeycomb pattern across their surfaces.

"What the heck are those things?" Vita asked, looking just as confused as the others. Suddenly, several spots on the objects began to glow red, and before anyone could react, the unknowns fired, releasing a flurry of red lasers on Fate and Arf. They had no choice but to take evasive action, leaving Vita behind. The three black ships split up, continuing to fire on them.

* * *

><p>"Fate... Arf..." Nanoha could still only watch as her friends were attacked.<p>

"This is starting to get really bad," said Yuuno. "I have to help!" He placed his hands together, and began chanting. "O feelings of mine, echo and become light." A green magic circle appeared under Nanoha. "Within this field of healing, grant her steel defense." A dome of light covered the circle. "This is a combination of healing and protection magic. Whatever you do, do not leave this area." Yuuno then flew off to join the battle.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, the man in black returned to the battlefield, approaching Vita.<p>

"What's wrong, Vita?" he asked her jokingly. "Let your guard down?"

"Shut up! This wouldn't have happened if you held off the familiar like you were supposed to!"

"I apologize. There were outlying circumstances that required my attention. Besides, you seem relatively unharmed." He held out his hand, a purple aura emanating from it. The binds on Vita lost their color and crumbled away, freeing her. "Come with me. We have to leave this area."

"What? What about our target?"

"Signum and the others have arrived. We must meet with them, now." Vita followed him downwards, to a lower rooftop, where three other people were waiting, two women, one man. One of the women had light blue eyes and pink hair tied into a long ponytail, nearly reaching her feet. She was dressed in a pink vest, with a white overcoat. Tied to her waist was a sheathed sword. The other woman had short blonde hair and was wearing a light green robe and hat. At her feet was a small plastic bag filled with groceries. The man with them was tall and dark-skinned, with short, silvery hair, clad in a sleeveless, black martial arts gi, and metal boots and gauntlets. The most noticable feature on the man was the pair of animal ears he had, almost identical to Arf's. Vita and the man landed just in front of them.

"You two made it," the pink-haired woman said to them. "What's the situation?"

"We tried to take the target," Vita said, "but it was a lot harder than we thought. Sorry, Signum."

"As long as you two are unharmed. If anything happened to you, our master would be worried."

"What about the Book?" the dark-skinned man asked. "Is it safe?"

"I have it right here, Zafira," the man in the black robe answered, reaching into his robe and pulling out the book. He approached the woman in the green robe, who had her back turned. "Here, Shamal, you–" He stopped when he noticed that the woman was speaking to somebody. She was not holding a phone, but was actually speaking into a pair of rings on her right hand. She was speaking softly, but he was able to make out the words.

"I'm really sorry," Shamal said into the rings. "I can't find our usual olive oil, so I'm going to another supermarket further away to look for it... I'll pick up everyone on the way home. I'm sorry I can't help you cook tonight... I will. Well then, goodbye." She turned around and faced the man in the black robe. "Ah, Merak! I didn't see you there. I'm sorry you had to wait, I was speaking to–"

"I know. It's quite alright," the man named Merak said, handing Shamal the book. "You'll be needing this."

"Thank you. I will end this as soon as possible, so we can go home." Shamal held out her right hand. "Klarer Wind, please guide me."

"_Ja. Pendel Form (Yes. Pendulum Form)._" Two tiny gems fitted into the rings floated upwards, slowly increasing in size, leaving behind a trail of light particles that led back to the rings. Strings of green light stretched out from the rings, connecting to the gems.

"We need to create a diversion while Shamal does her work," Signum said. "Let's go."

"That... won't be necessary," Merak interrupted. "When I retrieved Vita, I discovered another... complication." He pointed upwards. The group looked up at the sky to see the battle unfolding over their heads. "It would be a three-sided battle, and we would be outnumbered six to four. I suggest that we wait here and see what happens."

* * *

><p>Above, Fate, Arf, and Yuuno continued to dodge the unrelenting attacks from the three black ships, which continued to shower them in red lasers.<p>

"Why you...!" Arf growled, lunging at one of the ships. She threw a mighty punch, striking the ship on the front, and knocking off a large piece of it. "Ha! How did you like that?" Her celebration was cut short, however, when the damaged part of the ship began glowing white. Bit by bit, the ship began rebuilding the part that was destroyed. "No way! These things are regenerating!"

"I'll handle it!" Fate said, readying her weapon.

"_Photon Lancer._" Four yellow projectiles appeared around Fate.

"Rip through them! Fire!" With a swing of her weapon, Fate launched the projectiles at another one of the ships. The attacks connected, blowing off several chunks of the ship's armor. Just as before, the ship's armor began regenerating. "It's no good. They just keep healing themselves. Are these things unstoppable?" Suddenly, the third ship appeared behind Fate, firing another volley of lasers. Yuuno flew inbetween them and summoned a large shield, absorbing the attacks and dispersing them. The three fighters gathered as the ships began circling around them.

* * *

><p>Below, Nanoha could do nothing but watch the increasingly hopeless situation from the safety of the healing zone Yuuno created for her.<p>

"I have to save them," Nanoha said, stepping forward. She immediately felt the pain returning to her arm as she clutched it. She continued to step forward, not heeding Yuuno's instructions. "I have to save everyone..."

"_Master,_" Raising Heart grabbed Nanoha's attention as it started glowing. "_Shooting Mode. Acceleration._" A pair of wings made of pink light stretched out from the head of the staff.

"Raising Heart..."

"_Let's shoot it. Starlight Breaker._"

"No way... it's impossible to do something like that in your condition!"

"_I can do this._"

"Using a spell like that... the strain would destroy you, Raising Heart! I can't!"

"_I believe in you, Master._" Nanoha was surprised at the device's dedication to her. "_Trust me, my master._" Nanoha closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.

"Raising Heart, if you believe in me... then I'll believe in you." Nanoha raised her weapon, taking aim at the three black ships. An enormous magic circle appeared in front of her. 'Fate, Yuuno, Arf...' she communicated to them telepathically, 'I'll destroy the enemies and tear down this barrier, so be ready to move out of the way!'

'Nanoha!' Yuuno called out to her. 'You can't! Not in your condition!'

'Nanoha! Will you be all right?' Arf asked.

'I'm fine! I'll break through them with the Starlight Breaker!' Nanoha's body began tensing up. "Raising Heart, Countdown!"

"_All right._" A small pink sphere appeared between Nanoha and the magic circle in front of her, and began rapidly expanding. "_Count 9. 8. 7..._"

* * *

><p>Below, Vita and the others saw the ball of energy continuing to grow in size.<p>

"What in the world...?" Merak gasped, looking on in awe.

"We're running out of time," Signum said. "How much longer, Shamal?"

"Just a little more..." Shamal said, continuing to focus on her devices.

* * *

><p>"<em>6. 5. 4...<em>"

Fate, Yuuno, and Arf immediately dropped downwards, confounding the black ships. The ships stopped, unsure about how to respond.

* * *

><p>"<em>3. 3. 3. 3...<em>" Raising Heart's voice began stuttering.

"Raising Heart! Are you all right?" Nanoha asked, concerned. The large jewel on the head of her staff flickered in response.

"_...No problem. Count 3._" Nanoha pulled her staff back, ready to swing. "_2... 1..._" Suddenly, a sickening feeling overwhelmed all of Nanoha's senses. She staggered forward, having almost no control over her body. She struggled to look down, and saw a horrifying sight. There was a gaping hole in her chest, with a human hand reaching out of it.

* * *

><p>Above, Fate and the others saw what had happened. A wave of dread fell over them.<p>

"Nanoha!" Fate cried out, rushing towards her as fast as she could.

* * *

><p>Below, Shamal was standing in front of a green portal, her left hand reaching into it. Beside her, the book she was handed earlier silently floated in place, open to a blank page.<p>

"Oh no... I missed!" Shamal said, looking upset. She pulled her hand out of the portal, and reached back in. The hand in Nanoha's chest retreated, then stretched out even further, grasping a small wisp of light. "Capturing Linker Core. Begin collection!" The floating book began to glow brightly.

"_Sammeln (Collecting)._" Suddenly, the blank pages of the book began filling with words, flipping to new pages as they were filled.

* * *

><p>Nanoha could do nothing to stop the hand jutting out of her body. Staggering, she lifted up her staff.<p>

"_Count 0._"

"S-Starlight..." Nanoha swung with all her might. "BREAKER! ! !" For an instance, everything fell silent. Then, a deafening rumbling sound filled the air as the massive sphere of light was released into a gigantic beam. The beam engulfed the three black ships, as their forms began melting away under the unbridled energy, reducing them to dust. The beam continued, reaching the edge of the barrier, and plowed straight through it, shattering it like glass.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Asura Bridge<strong>

"Captain!" one of the officers shouted. "The barrier's been destroyed! Receiving visuals now!" The monitors displaying static began changing, one by one, showing images of the barrier's destruction, of Yuuno, Fate, Vita, and everyone else in the area.

"What is this! ?" Amy gasped, standing up from her seat. "What's going on down there! ?"

"This is...!" Chrono looked at the images of Vita, Merak, Signum, Shamal, and Zafira. "It's them...!"

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Uminari City, Urban District<strong>

"The barrier's been breached!" Signum said, signaling to the others. "We have to get out of here!"

"Hurry, Shamal!" said Vita.

"Just a few more seconds..." Shamal pulled her hand out of the portal as it faded away, the large gems in front of her shrinking and returning to their places on her rings. "There! Let's split up, and regroup at the usual place!" One by one, the five people began glowing, and vanished in a group of colored lights, scattering in all directions.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MS, Asura Bridge<strong>

"They're getting away!" Amy shouted. "Hurry up and lock onto them! Track their transference routes!"

"It's no use!" one of the officers responded. "Something is interfering with our equipment!" One of the displays switched to Shamal, carrying the Book in her arms.

"That's...!" Chrono gasped upon seeing the image. Another display appeared, showing Nanoha. She looked completely drained. She dropped to her knees, collapsing on the ground. Fate appeared almost immediately afterwards, holding Nanoha in her arms.

"This isn't good," Lindy said, watching the scene unfold. "Hurry and send a medical team to their location, on the double!"

"Yes, Captain!" one of the officers replied. "Opening central transference ports!"

"Start arranging preparations for the necessary medical treatment in the main office!"

"Roger!"

"It's no good," another officer said to Amy. "The lock wouldn't hold. We lost them."

"No!" Amy cried, slamming her hands on the console in front of her, bowing her head. "I'm so sorry, Chrono. I messed up..." She sat there, waiting for some reprimand from him, but Chrono was silent, still watching the monitors. Amy looked up at him. "Chrono?"

"...The Class 1 Lost Logia we were searching for..." Chrono muttered to himself. "...The 'Book of Darkness'..." He clenched his fists, his arms slightly trembling in anger.


	4. Legends Reborn

**Infinite Horizon Book 2: Twilight**

**by Exdeathmore**

* * *

><p><strong>Miniwiki:<strong> Merak

Merak is a man somehow affiliated with Vita, Signum, Shamal, Zafira, and Hayate Yagami. Fights using 6 remote-controlled devices, called Graves. More information to come as observations are made.

Note: Like his associates, Merak is named after a car, the Maserati Merak.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3: Legends Reborn<strong>

**Sector MS, Yagami Residence**

Hayate, Vita, and Zafira, now assuming the form of a black wolf, sat on the living room floor, watching television. On the sofa, Signum was reading the newspaper, while Merak seemed lost in thought, his eyes closed, his arms crossed. Vita, Signum, and Merak were now wearing more casual clothing, rather than the robes and armor they wore during their encounter with Nanoha. If one did not know any better, they would think the three were ordinary people.

"Hayate, I've finished preparing the bath," Shamal said, entering the room, also wearing normal clothes.

"Okay, thanks!" Hayate said.

"Vita, you can come in with us."

"All right," Vita replied.

"You have to be at the hospital tomorrow morning," Signum said to Hayate as she flipped to the next page of her newspaper, not looking away from it. "You probably shouldn't stay up too late tonight."

"Okay," Hayate answered. Shamal approached her and picked her up, carrying her out of the room, Vita following. After the three were gone, Merak opened his eyes, holding a hand to his head.

"Well, this is turning out to be a colossal mess," Merak said, shaking his head.

"What do you mean?" Signum asked him. "We were able to collect the energy for the Book as we planned."

"Yes, but look at the attention we garnered. Those mages were from the Administration Bureau. After that little debacle, we won't even be able to sneeze without them noticing. And then there were those black ships that appeared out of nowhere. They obviously weren't on our side, but not their's, either. And another thing..."

"...We are running out of magical sources to harvest on this world," Zafira finished for him. "We were fortunate enough to find other mages from the Bureau on this world, as well as tonight's target, but there aren't many other viable sources of magical energy left."

"Then perhaps we should broaden our options..." said Signum. "We'll discuss this later, when everyone is available."

"With the exception of our mistress, you mean," Merak said. "If she knew what we were doing..."

"That is why she must never know. It is our duty as the Wolkenritter (Cloud Knights) to serve in our mistress's best interests, even if we must decieve her to do so..."

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MH, Misumi Residence<strong>

"I'm home!" Nagisa said cheerfully as she entered her home, carrying her lacrosse racket. However, there was no reply. The inside of the house was empty, the lights turned off. "Huh? It's pitch black in here." Nagisa turned on the lights, and noticed a note on the kitchen table. She picked it up and read it.

"Gone shopping with Ryouta. -Mom"

"Hmm..." Just then, she heard a very faint mumbling sound coming from down the hallway. Nagisa gasped. "Is someone else here?" She quietly crept down the hallway. The mumbling got a little louder. It sounded like it was coming from Nagisa's room. "Could it be.. a burglar?" She stopped in front of the door, and took a deep breath. She kicked open the door and barged in, ready to swing her racket like a baseball bat.

"Who's there! ?" she demanded. Inside her room, there was a short, old man with long, shaggy white hair, sitting at a small table. His eyebrows, moustache, and beard nearly covered his entire face. Across from him was a tiny man in robes, with 7 colored spheres floating around him. Both were casually enjoying cups of tea.

"Welcome home," the old man said to Nagisa.

"Have a good day at school?" the tiny man asked her.

"Phew," Nagisa let out a sigh of relief. "It's just the Elder and the Guardian..." Several seconds passed before it finally clicked. "What the heck are you doing here! ?" she shouted at them, breaking the silence.

"It was pretty hard for someone of my age to come," the Elder said. "I needed Porun's help just to get here."

"Huh? Porun?" Nagisa looked to the side to see Porun happily bouncing up and down.

"Nagisa!" Porun cried out in his squeaky, childish voice. He jumped towards her, landing in her arms. "I wanted to see you so much-popo!"

"Porun! You're awake! But wait, that also means..."

"Nagisa!" a familiar voice called to her. Out of nowhere, Mepple lunged at her, clinging onto her face. "Did ya miss me-mepo?"

"Mmf!" Nagisa mumbled as she grabbed him and pulled him off. "Why you...!" It looked like Nagisa was about to scold Mepple, but she began hugging him and Porun. "I did! I did miss you!"

"I hate to interrupt," the Guardian said, "but there's a reason we came here. Something terrible has happened in the Garden of Light!"

"What! ?" Nagisa gasped. "Hold on, I'll call Honoka! She needs to hear this, too!" Nagisa pulled out her cell phone, and began dialing.

* * *

><p>The Earth of Dimensional Sector MH, also known as "The Garden of Rainbows". The world has been at a relative peace since Nagisa Misumi and Honoka Yukishiro defeated the Dark King as the legendary warriors, Pretty Cure. Their victory came at a cost, however. Their duties fulfilled, the fairies from the Garden of Light, Mipple, Mepple, and Porun, fell into a deep slumber, one from which they might not awaken from for many, many years.<p>

The peace would not last, though. With his dying breath, the Dark King dealt a fatal blow against the Queen of Light. Unable to maintain her form, her body separated into three components: her heart, her life, and 12 fragments of her will: the Heartiels. These pieces scattered to the far reaches of the universe. Requiring the aid of Pretty Cure again, the Elder and the Guardian of the Prism Stones came to Sector MH from the Garden of Light to inform Nagisa and Honoka of what happened.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector RZ, Hikari Residence, Maria's Room<strong>

Maria happily hummed a tune as she entered her room, changing out of her school uniform into more casual clothing. A big smile stretched across her face the entire time. On a nearby desk, her watch began glowing.

"You sound awfully happy," came X's voice from the watch. "How was your day?"

"It was great!" Maria cheerfully replied. "I'm meeting with two of my friends later today to watch the Reploid exhibition at the FutureTech building! Papa said he's going to give a speech there!"

* * *

><p>Maria Hikari has returned to her normal school life after thwarting the forces of Dr. Wily, a bitter man who swore revenge against her father, Dr. Hikari, whom he believed was responsible for the death of Maria's mother, a woman Wily once loved. During her final encounter against Wily, Maria made a shocking discovery: the accident that claimed her mother's life had gravely injured her as a child, and through the use of advanced technology created by her father, she was rebuilt as a cyborg. Despite this revelation, Maria's heart did not waver, and she succeeded in defeating Wily, rescuing Dr. Hikari, and finally ending the threat of the W Virus, the malicious code that caused robots to go berserk. Before he could be taken into custody, however, Wily incapacitated Maria and her father, and mysteriously vanished.<p>

* * *

><p>"Reploid?" X asked. "What's a Reploid?"<p>

"It's a new kind of robot," Maria explained. "One that's supposed to think and feel like a human. Papa helped design it, and get this: he used research notes from the W Virus to do it!"

"The W Virus! ?" The watch seemed to vibrate as if broadcasting X's disbelief. "Has he lost his mind? The W Virus is what caused robots to become violent!"

"That's what I said when he told me, but he said he noticed something else about the infected robots: they also developed personalities. I noticed it, too, with Forte and... Ballade." Maria looked upset upon mentioning Ballade's name.

"...He was more human than most people," X consoled her. "He sacrificed himself to save you, your father, and even Wily, while Forte left you to die."

"..." Maria shook her head, and slapped her face with both hands, snapping herself out of her gloom. "I can't sit here moping all day! We have to get going!" She grabbed her watch from the desk, slipped it around her right wrist, and headed out the door.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MH, Downtown Street<strong>

"This is a lot to take in..." Honoka said to Nagisa as they headed home from school. "First, the Elder and Guardian show up at your home, then they tell us that the Queen of Light has disappeared..."

"What were those two thinking, showing up in my room?" Nagisa asked. "What if my family was home? I'd never be able to explain it! Anyway... the Elder said that the Queen is somewhere here in our world, in pieces... where do we even start looking?" Across the street, there was a girl about Nagisa and Honoka's age, staring blankly into space. She had bright blonde hair, and radiant, golden eyes. The two girls stopped walking, noticing the girl. The strange girl turned and faced the two. The look on her face seemed to be one of confusion, yet felt overwhelmingly powerful.

"Nagisa... have you ever noticed that girl around here before?" Honoka asked. Nagisa only shook her head in response. Just then, a man with short blond hair and green eyes, wearing all black clothing and a black overcoat, approached the girl. Around his waist were two swords, sheathed.

"There you are," the man said to the girl. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

"..." The girl gave the man the same blank stare. "...Who are you?" she asked in a meek voice.

"I'm the guy that's going to take you home." The man grabbed the girl's hand. "Come on, now. Time to go." He tried walking away with her, but the girl pulled her hand away.

"I don't know you... I won't go with you!"

"Come on now, don't be difficult about this..." The man grabbed her by the arm, this time more forcibly.

"No! Stop!" The girl cried out, trying to break out of his grip.

"Hey, you!" Nagisa shouted at the man. "What do you think you're doing, kidnapping a girl in broad daylight! ?"

"Buzz off!" the man shouted back. "I'm just trying to do my job, here!" Suddenly, the skies grew dark. A blanket of pitch-black clouds loomed overhead, blotting out the sun.

"Nagisa! Look out-mepo!" Mepple called out to her from inside her bag.

"I sense the power of darkness-mipo!" Mipple added. Just then, a lamp post behind Nagisa and Honoka fell over, threatening to crush the two.

"Look out!" Nagisa shoved Honoka and leapt away before the post crashed to the ground.

"What the?" The man was distracted by what just happened. The girl used this opportunity to pull away from him and run off. "Hey, wait a minute!" the man called out to her, but before he could chase after her, a nearby electrical pole began falling over. The man dove out of the way before it nearly landed on top of him. Soon, all of the poles and traffic lights in the area were spilling over, falling apart.

"Are you all right, Honoka?" Nagisa asked, helping her friend to her feet.

"I'm fine," Honoka replied. Suddenly, a black ooze began bubbling out of the ground, flooding the street and wrapping itself around the fallen poles. The black blob's form began twisting and contorting, shifting into a familiar humanoid shape, with three traffic light eyes, armor plates composed of signposts, and concrete cylinder arms.

"_Zakenna!_" the creature roared, glaring at the two girls. At that time, the man in the black overcoat got up, and saw the monstrous creature looming over him.

"I don't..." the man started.

"...believe this! !" Nagisa seemingly finished his sentence as she and Honoka started to run away, the Zakenna giving chase.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector RZ, FutureTech Plaza<strong>

"...Ladies and gentlemen," a spokesman began giving his scripted speech from a podium atop a raised platform. "We at FutureTech wish to thank you for coming out here today on this most momentous occasion." Below the speaker, the enormous crowd continued to grow. At the edge of the crowd, Maria arrived, looking around for her friends from school.

"Maria! Maria, over here!" someone called out to her. Maria looked to her right to see two girls waving at her. She immediately ran towards them, but ended up bumping into a member of the crowd. It was a young man, about her age, with long, spiky blond hair, wearing a gray t-shirt and red jacket, with blue jeans and sneakers. Maria could not see the young man's eyes beneath the large shades he was wearing.

"I'm so sorry!" Maria said, bowing in apology. "I didn't see you, I–" She stopped when she noticed the man not paying attention to her, pushing deeper into the crowd and leaving her behind. "Huh? Okay then..." Maria continued on her way, meeting up with her classmates.

"You made it just in time," one of the girls said. "Who was that guy you bumped into?"

"I don't know... he acted like nothing happened, even when I tried apologizing."

"Talk about rude," the other girl commented. "Oh, they're starting! Shh!" The three girls turned their attention to the platform.

"Today, mankind takes another step forward into the future," the spokesman continued. "Before we proceed, allow me to introduce our guest speaker, the foremost authority on modern robotics, Dr. Tadashi Hikari!" The crowd applauded as Maria's father stepped onto the stage.

"Isn't that your dad, Maria?" one of the girls asked her.

"Yep! That's him!" Maria nodded. She started jumping up, waving at him from the back of the crowd. Dr. Hikari noticed this, and waved back with a gentle smile before stepping up to the microphone, clearing his throat. The crowd fell silent.

"Thank you, it's a pleasure to be here today," Dr. Hikari began. "I'm not really one for long, drawn-out speeches, so I'll try to be brief. For years, humanity has worked alongside robots to make the world a better, safer place. But there was one key element missing: synergy. The limitations of programming in robots today creates an atmosphere of isolation. Where humans makes decisions and judgments through realtime reasoning, robots can only make decisions based on their programming before performing a task, and require almost constant supervision by humans. Today, those limitations end." Another man stepped onto the platform. He was bald, tall and well-built, wearing a business suit. "Believe it or not, this man is not a human being, but I will let him explain himself." Dr. Hikari stepped back, allowing the "man" to take the mic.

"Good day," the man said in a powerful, gruff voice. "My name is Sigma, and as Dr. Hikari stated, I am in fact, not human. I... am a Reploid, an advanced form of robotic life." The people in the crowd began talking amongst themselves, accompanied by several gasps.

"Not a human?" one of the girls with Maria asked. "But he's so lifelike! Can you believe it, Maria? A machine that looks exactly like a person!"

"Uh..." Maria began sweating a little. "No... comment?" She shrugged.

"We Reploids are equipped with an advanced form of artificial intelligence," Sigma continued. "As such, Reploids possess free will, and are not subject to the Laws of Robotics as older models are." The low roar of the crowd grew louder as some people looked worried. Sigma raised his hand to calm the crowd. "I understand that this raises many concerns. However, it is this fact that will allow us to develop a stronger bond with humans. With free will comes compassion, a sense of right and wrong. We can understand the concepts of camaraderie and work with humans on a more personal level, so that one day, we can become more than just partners in labor: we can become friends in life. Thank you." The crowd applauded as Sigma stepped away from the mic, and Dr. Hikari returned to it.

"Thank you for your enlightening speech, Sigma," Dr. Hikari said. "Next in our program, we will–"

"Look out!" someone from behind the platform shouted. Out of nowhere, a table came flying through the air, over the platform, and towards the crowd. The people scattered as the table crashed to the ground, shattering into pieces. A short robot, with two large, scissor-like claws, a finned tail, and a pair of long whiskers protruding from its face, jumped onto the stage, thrashing about wildly. Dr. Hikari, Sigma, and the spokesman from before all backed away from it.

"Rrraaagh! !" The robot roared. It grabbed the podium in its claws, and hurled it at Dr. Hikari.

"Papa!" Maria cried out, trying to push past the panicked crowd. Sigma pushed Dr. Hikari to the ground as the podium passed overhead, narrowly missing both of them.

"Are you all right, doctor?" Sigma asked Dr. Hikari as he helped him to his feet.

"I'm fine," Dr. Hikari said, shaking his head. "We need to get the people to safety!"

"Leave that to me, you should head somewhere safe." Sigma guided Dr. Hikari down from the platform and ushered him to a nearby exit before heading towards the fleeing crowd. Meanwhile, the spokesman ran behind the platform, approaching a technician.

"What the heck's going on! ?" the spokesperson asked the technician. "What happened?"

"I don't know!" he replied. "Crush was complaining about a headache a few minutes ago, then he just flipped out!"

"He was one of the military-grade Reploids we were about to introduce! We can't let this get out, it would be a PR nightmare! Call security and get this under control!"

* * *

><p>At that time, Maria pushed past the crowd to the front of the platform, but saw no sign of her father.<p>

"Papa! Papa!" Maria called out to him, but received no response.

"It's too dangerous, Maria!" X's voice came from her watch. "You need to transform!"

"Right!" Maria ran off to a secluded part of the plaza, and held her right arm into the air. "Rock Armor, Equip!" Streams of light poured out of her watch, wrapping around her body. The light dispersed, and Maria was covered in her gray body armor. She quickly headed back to the scene of the chaos.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MH, Downtown Street<strong>

"Nagisa! You need to transform-mepo!" Mepple shouted at Nagisa as she and Honoka continued running away from the Zakenna.

"There's no way!" Nagisa objected. "Not when that thing's chasing us!"

"Hey!" the man in the overcoat shouted, running after the monster, waving his arms. "Hey! Over here, ugly!" As he was running, he bent over and grabbed a piece of the broken sidewalk, and threw it at the beast. The rock hit the Zakenna in the head, causing it to turn around. "Yeah, that's right! Over here!" The creature began lumbering towards him. "Oh, crap..." The man ducked into a nearby alleyway. The Zakenna tried to grab him, but its body was too large to fit into the narrow space. Nagisa and Honoka stopped running when they realized they were safe.

"Why did it stop chasing us?" Honoka asked, not noticing the man's intervention.

"Who cares-mepo?" Mepple responded.

"Now's your chance, Honoka!" Mipple said. "Transform-mipo!" The two fairies changed into their device forms, as Nagisa and Honoka grabbed each other's hand, raising their free arms in the air.

"Dual Aurora Wave!" they shouted in unison as a pillar of rainbow-colored light enveloped them. In a burst of energy, the light vanished, the two girls' appearances changed.

"Emissary of Light, Cure Black!"

"Emissary of Light, Cure White!"

"We are Pretty Cure!" The two struck their classic pose.

"Servants of the Dark Power, return to the darkness from which you came!" They pointed at the Zakenna, which was still trying to grab at the man hidden in the alleyway, ignoring them.

"...He's totally ignoring us," Cure Black said with a disappointing sigh. "Pay attention when we're talking to you!" She charged at the monster, leapt up, and delivered a powerful kick to its head, knocking it over on its side. The Zakenna quickly recovered, and took a swing at Black as White joined the fight. As the three exchanged blows, the man from before poked his head out of the alley, watching the fight.

"...Whoa..." he muttered to himself, nearly speechless at what he was seeing. "Are those the kids from earlier? This just keeps getting weirder and weirder..." The man slowly backed away. "I need to have a serious talk with my client..." He disappeared into the alley.

"_Zakenna!_" The monster's arm shot out like a rocket, still connected to its body by a striped cable, reaching for White. She gracefully twirled to the side, avoiding the flying arm, and grabbed it with both hands, pulling down on it. The monster was hoisted into the air, and came crashing down on its back.

"Incredible-mepo!" Mepple gasped. "It's like you two have become even stronger than before-mepo!"

"I can certainly feel it," White said, "but we can worry about that later." She jumped away from the monster, landing next to Black.

"Looks like he's still got some fight in him," Black said, noticing the Zakenna struggling to get back up. "Let's finish it off, just like old times!" White nodded as they joined hands. "Black Thunder!"

"White Thunder!" Bolts of lightning shot down as the girls' bodies began to glow. "Pretty Cure's pure souls..."

"...shall crush your evil heart!"

"Pretty Cure Marble Screw!" They each held out their arms in front of them. "Max!" Two massive beams of black and white energy poured out, mingling and merging into one. The Zakenna was completely devoured by the shower of light, its body breaking apart as the spirit left it, clutching its head in pain before dispersing into a cluster of black stars which ran away in fear, fading away. The dark skies above immediately cleared up, and as the sun began shining again, the area around the girls shifted, reverting to the way it was before the monster appeared, as if nothing had happened.

"Phew..." Black let out a sigh. "I'm glad that's over with."

"I still don't understand," White said. "I thought we defeated the Dark King. Why did the Zakenna attack us? Could this have something to do with the Queen's disappearance?" She paused for a moment. "Black, what's that on your shoulder?"

"What's what on my shoulder?" Black looked to her left, and saw a small creature sitting on her shoulder. It looked like a tiny person, only about two inches tall, with orange hair and clothing, and a tiny pair of wings. "Wah!" Black panicked, swiping it off. The little fairy floated in front of the girls, staring at them.

"I've been searching for you, Pretty Cure," the fairy said in a high-pitched voice.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector RZ, FutureTech Plaza<strong>

"Rraagh! !" the lobster-like robot roared again as it used its large claws to swipe at security officers, knocking them to the ground. It slowly approached one of the fallen officers, opening its claws, ready to deal a killing blow. Just then, the robot was struck in the back by several bolts of energy. It turned around to see Maria, her Rock Buster aimed at it, smoke coming out of the barrel. The officer on the ground quickly scrambled away, running for his life.

"Your fight's with me!" Maria shouted at the robot. "Give up! I don't want to hurt you if I don't have to!" The lobster Reploid responded by launching one of its claws at her like a cannonball. Maria rolled out of the way, taking aim again as the claw returned to its owner. Light began gathering at the tip of the Rock Buster. "Charge Shot!" A larger burst of energy shot out of the barrel, striking the enemy head-on, kicking up a large cloud of smoke and debris. Maria lowered her weapon.

"...Is it over?" she asked herself. Suddenly, the lobster Reploid charged through the cloud, completely unscathed, headed towards her. "What? The Charge Shot didn't work! ?" Before she could react, the Reploid grabbed her, squeezing her between its claws. Maria cried out in pain as the claws slowly squeezed tighter, crushing her. At that moment, Dr. Hikari returned to the area, wanting to make sure everyone made it out safely, only to see his daughter in trouble.

"Maria!" Dr. Hikari called to her. He wanted to save her, but knew he would only make matters worse. "Somebody, anybody!" he started shouting for help. "Someone please help her!" There was a flash of green light. Suddenly, the lobster Reploid's claws broke off, their grip on Maria loosened as they dropped to the ground. The robot staggered backwards, flailing its severed arms as electricity sparked from them. There was another green flash. The robot's leg came off as it fell to the ground.

"What... what's happening?" Maria struggled to get up, but stopped when she saw someone standing in front of her. It looked like a young man, about her age, with long, spiky blond hair and blue eyes, clad in red body armor, reminiscent of a knight's suit of armor. In his right hand was a hilt, a green blade of light emitting from one end. The armored man lunged at the fallen Reploid, driving his blade into its head. The robot's body went limp, all motion ceasing. He removed the blade, and sheathed it in a small compartment on the back of his chestplate, not turning to help or even face Maria.

"It's... it's him!" Dr. Hikari gasped, freezing in place. "Why? Why is he here, of all times! ?"

"..." The young man glared at Dr. Hikari for a moment. He turned around and faced Maria, who was still on the floor, dazed.

"Who... who are you?" Maria asked him.

"Over here, quickly!" a man's voice shouted out. They turned to see a squad of security officers approaching. The young man in the red armor quickly ran off.

"W, wait!" Maria tried to call out to the young man as she stood up, but he was already gone. She looked around, and noticed her father, unharmed. She let out a sigh of relief, then made her way to the exit before the officers arrived. They immediately surrounded the remains of the dead Reploid, carrying the pieces away.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector RZ, Hikari Residence<strong>

About an hour later, Maria returned home, changing herself back to normal. Exhausted, she slumped down on the living room sofa.

"What a day," Maria said, breathing heavily. "First, another robot goes berserk, and then that guy in red saves me, and runs off... but, at least the danger's over, and Papa is safe, right, X?"

"..." There was no response from her watch.

"Huh? X? Are you there?" Maria tapped the watch, but still, nothing. Just then, the front door opened, and Dr. Hikari entered the house.

"Maria, are you all right?" he immediately asked, rushing over to her side, examining her. "You aren't hurt, are you?"

"I'm fine, Papa," Maria said, hugging her father. "I should be asking if _you_ are all right?"

"Yes, I am. When the attack started, Sigma guided me to an exit and helped the other civilians to safety, a perfect example of the camaraderie and friendship between man and machine he spoke about."

"...Too bad the same couldn't be said about that other robot, the one who was doing the attacking..."

"Maria, there's something you need to know. The robot that attacked you, it was–" Before he could finish, a low beeping sound interrupted him. They both looked around the room, and noticed a small, pyramid-shaped object on the table in front of them glowing with a faint light. "Isn't that...?"

"...the communication device from the Administration Bureau?" Maria leaned over and grabbed the device.

"Can you hear me, Maria Hikari?" a familiar voice came from the device. Maria recognized it almost immediately.

"That voice... Chrono? What's going on? I thought you said this communication device would be deactivated."

"Something has happened... we need your assistance, immediately."


	5. Sparkling Life, Shiny Luminous!

**Infinite Horizon Book 2: Twilight**

**by Exdeathmore**

* * *

><p><strong>Miniwiki:<strong> Dr. Wily (Rockgirl series)

Dr. Albert Wily was a German scientist from Sector RZ who specialized in robotics and weapons research and development. As a young man, he began a rivalry with Dr. Tadashi Hikari, not only in their work, but also to win the affection of a woman they both loved. In the end, the woman chose Dr. Hikari, and the two were wed and gave birth to a baby girl, Maria, with Wily congratulating the two. Several years later, however, tragedy struck when an experiment involving a newly discovered energy source went awry, causing an explosion that killed Maria's mother and severely injured the young Maria. Wily blamed Dr. Hikari for her death and the apparent death of his daughter, and swore revenge for putting them in that situation, disappearing from the public eye.

Dr. Wily returned as the creator of the W Virus, a malicious program that caused robots to become violent and attack humans. Commanding two personal bodyguard robots, Ballade and Forte, he kidnapped Dr. Hikari, forcing Maria to don the RG-01 body armor created by her father to search for him. With the help of Nanoha Takamachi and her companions, Maria found Wily's base of operations and confronted him. Surprised to see Maria still alive after the accident, Wily forced Dr. Hikari to reveal the truth to everyone: in order to save her life, Dr. Hikari turned her into a cyborg, a fusion of man and machine. Enraged, Maria threatened to kill Wily, believing he forced her father to lie, but came to her senses at the urging of her friends. When Wily's base was destroyed, Maria decided to turn him in to the authorities of her world. Before she could, Wily incapacitated her before quietly apologizing for putting her through so much suffering, and disappeared. He has not been seen since.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4: Sparkling Life, Shiny Luminous!<strong>

**Sector MS, Yagami Residence**

"So it's decided then," Signum said to the other Wolkenritter gathered in the living room. "We cannot restrict ourselves to this world if we hope to fill the Book's pages."

"Yeah," Vita said. "Those mages from the Administration Bureau will be watching this world very carefully after what happened the other night, so we have to look elsewhere for magical energy."

"If I may interrupt..." Merak inserted himself into the conversation. One of his Graves floated towards the center of the room, projecting a holographic sphere with millions of glowing spots within it, some spots glowing brighter than others. "I have already determined several locations where we can begin our search, shown by these bright spots, in Dimensional Sectors RE, WN, and ZZ."

"Good," Signum said with a nod. "Let's get going, then."

"What about Hayate? She'll become suspicious if we all disappeared at once."

"Zafira and I will stay here and keep Hayate company," Shamal said. "You should be able to do your work, just... remember to come back home once in a while, so she doesn't feel so lonely."

"We'll keep that in mind," Signum said. "We'll each investigate one sector. I will take RE. Vita, you will go to ZZ, and Merak will examine WN."

"We'll be back before Hayate even knows we left," said Vita. Three magic triangles appeared beneath her, Signum, and Merak, and in an instant, they vanished.

"Be safe..." Shamal said, looking slightly worried.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MH, Dusk Manor<strong>

Inside a dusty mansion, two small Zakenna, dressed as butlers, were cleaning the main atrium. The taller butler was reading a book while meagerly sweeping back and forth with a feather duster, not paying attention. The smaller butler saw this, and stopped what he was doing.

"Hey!" the small butler yelled at his partner. "Do it properly-zakenna!"

"But I'm tired of cleaning-zakenna!" the tall butler whined.

"What was that-zakenna! ?"

"Tired, tired, tired-zakenna!" The two began fighting, knocking over things and kicking up even more dust. The front doors swung open, and the man in the black overcoat stepped in, his boots caked with mud.

"Ah! Stop, stop-zakenna!" the short butler yelled at the man. "You're making it all dirty-zakenna!"

"Hm?" The man looked down at his feet, then back at the butler. He started rubbing his feet on the carpet, wiping the mud off.

"AAH! !" the little butler screamed.

"You should probably whine less and work more," the man said. "I'm looking for your boss. Where is he?" Just as he asked, a large man came down the stairs into the atrium. He had long blondish hair and very pale skin, clad in a skin-tight bodysuit and white cape. "Oh, there you are. Listen, Mr. ...Circulas, was it? We need to talk about our current arrangement. You hired me to find the girl and bring her back here. Nobody said anything about giant monsters and girls with inhuman superstrength. I think I need a pay increase."

"..." Circulas glared at the man. "...So you did not retrieve her?"

"Uh, yeah? Didn't you just hear me? Monsters? Superpowered kids?"

"There are no negotiations. Find the girl and bring her here, or there will be no payment."

"Sheesh, fine. Be that way. I'll deal with it." The man began walking out the doors, but stopped briefly. "You better be on the level with me about this." He left the manor the way he came.

"...I thought hiring that mercenary would allow us to secure the girl without detection," Circulas said to himself as the Zakenna butlers busily scrubbed the mud from the carpet. "I should've known better than to trust a mere human with such delicate work..."

* * *

><p><strong>Sector LN, TSAB Base<strong>

Chrono and Maria walked together down a long corridor, passing several busy-looking people in blue uniforms.

"I still don't understand why you came to me," Maria said to Chrono as they continued walking. "I thought you said separated worlds aren't supposed to interact with each other unless necessary."

"It was an order from a superior officer," Chrono said. "I'm sorry for my abruptness, but this is an emergency. You're sure your father was okay with letting us bring you here?"

"Yes. After everything you, Nanoha, and the others did for us, we'd be more than happy to repay the favor."

"Good, then you just might get that chance..." They took a sudden right turn, and entered another room. Inside, Fate sat beside a bed attached to monitoring equipment.

"Fate Testarossa?" Maria was surprised to see her.

"Ah, you're... Maria Hikari, right?" Fate asked. "I remember... you're one of Nanoha's friends from another world."

"What are you–" Before Maria could finish asking her next question, she looked behind Fate and saw Nanoha in the bed, out cold. "Nanoha!" she gasped, rushing over to the bed. "What happened to her?"

"She was attacked about a day ago in her world," Chrono explained. "According to the scans, her injuries don't seem to be serious, but she's been unconscious since then. Her Linker Core has been damaged."

"Linker Core?"

"It's the source of a mage's power, kind of like an extra organ for us. It's what allows us to manifest the Mana inside of us in the form of spells."

"Who could've done this? Why would they attack Nanoha?"

"It was two powerful mages," Fate said. "That night, we were also attacked by black ships with red laser weaponry."

"Black ships? Red lasers? Don't tell me... was it the Demonkind! ?" Maria started to look worried.

"We've already ruled that out," Chrono said. "The Demonkind are still honoring the peace agreement with the TSAB and the humans of Sector KT. We contacted Raziel, and he verified it, which means the black ships came from somewhere else."

"Well, what about Nanoha? Will she be all right?"

"Damaged Linker Cores regenerate over time. She'll make a full recovery. Until then, I need your help with something else."

"Huh?"

* * *

><p><strong>Sector RE, Atlas City Tavern<strong>

"Sorry for the wait," a waitress said, placing two plates piled with mountains of spaghetti on the table. "Triple portions, just as you asked."

"All right!" Gourry shouted excitedly, grabbing a fork in each hand.

"Let's eat!" Lina said, doing the same. The pair tore into the food like wild beasts, not stopping for even a moment. They were so obsessed with eating what was in front of them, they began eating the food off of each other's plates. "Outta my way!" Lina shouted at Gourry inbetween bites.

"Ever hear of the word 'restraint'?" Gourry retorted.

"What's that supposed to mean! ?"

"Hey! Keep it down!" one of the tavern patrons yelled at the two. "Other people are trying to eat in peace!" He stopped when he recognized them almost immediately. "Lina? Gourry?"

"Hm?" Lina and Gourry stopped, mouths full, and looked at the patron, who had an unforgettable face. Sitting at the same table as him was someone else they recognized. Lina swallowed the food in her mouth, nearly choking. "Zelgadis! ? Amelia! ?"

* * *

><p>One year has passed in the world of Dimensional Sector RE since the end of the First Infinite Horizon Crisis. The prodigal sorceress Lina Inverse, along with the wandering swordsman, Gourry Gabriev, after travelling across the universe with Nanoha Takamachi and her friends, have returned to their homeworld, continuing their journey in pursuit of adventure, and more importantly, unimaginable riches. Their path has brought the pair to Atlas City, home of the Sorcerers' Guild, and one of the largest cities in the world. In the midst of enjoying their meal, Lina and Gourry have suddenly found themselves reunited with two other companions from their world: Amelia Saillune, the justice-loving princess of the kingdom of Saillune, and Zelgadis Graywords, a human-turned-chimera who once served the now-deceased Rezo the Red Priest.<p>

* * *

><p>"Wow, it's already been a whole year, hasn't it?" Gourry asked. "Those were some crazy times back then, weren't they?"<p>

"Sure was," Zelgadis said. "Definitely something we won't be seeing again anytime soon."

"So, what brings you to Atlas City?"

"Following rumors. I heard someone in this city has information on the location of the Claire Bible, a mysterious book which supposedly contains the deepest, darkest secrets of the sorcery and demons of the netherworld..."

"...Uhhh-huh." Gourry seemed uninterested. "So, Amelia, why are you here?"

"Hey! Don't just drop the topic like that!" Zelgadis slammed the table with his fist.

"I decided to stay with Zelgadis rather than go home," Amelia said. "There's so much more good I can do out here than from the confines of a castle! A true hero of justice never rests!"

"'True hero of justice'?" Lina raised an eyebrow at Amelia. "You sound like that Shiro guy we travelled with. Justice this, sacrifice that..."

"Exactly! He's the perfect example of what it means to fight for justice! One must be ready to put everything on the line to do the right thing! He's just like my dad!"

"Right... anyway, about this Claire Bible business... you're hoping it'll have a spell that can change you back into a full-blooded human, aren't you, Zel?"

"What! ?" Amelia gasped. "Why would want to do that! ? You're so cool the way you are right now!"

"Well, I hate it!" Zelgadis objected.

"But why? Even if you look different, our friendship is eternal! So what if you aren't human! ?"

"Now listen here, you...!"

'The Claire Bible, huh...?' Lina thought to herself as Amelia and Zelgadis argued. 'Hmm... I think it's time to gather some info on it...'

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MH, Yukishiro Residence, Honoka's Room<strong>

Nagisa, Honoka, and the others quietly sat in the room, watching the tiny fairy that appeared to them the other day fly around restlessly. It flew up to a mirror, examining its reflection.

"What is this?" the fairy asked, pointing at the mirror.

"It's a mirror," Honoka answered.

"Sheesh, she's been doing nothing but asking questions since we found her," said Nagisa. "What exactly is she, anyway?"

"She is a Heartiel," the Elder from the Garden of Light replied. "One of the twelve wills of the Queen of Light that scattered when she disappeared. "This particular one is Seekun, the will of exploration and searching, asking about many things in the pursuit of knowledge."

"That's why she's so curious," Honoka said.

"Pretty Cure, do you know where the Queen is?" Seekun asked the two girls.

"Huh? Don't you know?" Nagisa asked. "Aren't you a part of the Queen?"

"The Queen's life, heart, and will are all separate. They are so far apart..."

"This world shares a very strong connection with the Garden of Light," the Elder said. "The Queen's heart and life should be somewhere here, in the Garden of Rainbows..."

"So..." Nagisa started, "if we find this heart, life, and all twelve Heartiels, will the Queen return to normal?"

"...I cannot say for sure. Nothing like this has ever happened in all my years, but if nothing is done, nothing will change, that much is certain. As for the Zakenna that attacked you... light and darkness are two sides of the same coin. Like the change in the Queen, something may have happened in the world of darkness, as well."

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MH, Park<strong>

The mysterious girl from the other day sat by the river, watching the water gently flow by, the sun reflecting off the surface.

"Who am I?" the girl asked herself. "Why am I here?" Just then, she noticed something sparkling in the water. She got up, edging closer to the water's edge. She carefully reached out with both hands, and grabbed what looked like a large, golden jewelry box. "What is this?" The girl examined the box, opening it up, and noticing another container inside, with twelve compartments arranged in a ring with a hole in the center.

'_You must meet them once again,_' a gentle voice poured into her mind.

"Who's there?" the girl asked, looking around, but seeing nobody.

'_You are calling everyone forth. You are the call. To those people who shall become precious and dear to you... you must meet them again..._'

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MH, Yukishiro Residence, Honoka's Room<strong>

"Popo?" Porun froze in place, and began staring at the door, towards the outside.

"Porun?" Nagisa noticed his strange behavior. "What's wrong? Do you want to go play outside?"

"A meeting-popo..." he muttered to himself, almost in a trance. "A meeting-popo!" he suddenly cried out.

"I can feel it! I can feel it! I can feel it!" Seekun repeated, frantically flying about.

"What's gotten into you two?" Honoka asked.

"The Queen! It's the Queen! The Queen is in danger!"

"We have to go-popo! We have to help the Queen-popo!" Porun hopped over to the door, sliding it open, as he and Seekun ran off.

"Ah! Wait!" Nagisa called out to them. "Let's go, Honoka!"

"Right!" Honoka nodded.

"Don't forget us-mepo!" Mepple and Mipple changed into device form and landed in the girls' hands. The girls quickly gave chase, leaving the Elder and Guardian behind.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector RE, Bandit Camp<strong>

Explosions lit up the night sky as makeshift fortifications crumbled and burned. Bruised, bloody, and broken bandits ran every which way in a panic. At the center of the chaos stood Lina, looking proud and confident.

"Mercy! Please, mercy!" One of the outlaws got on his hands and knees, groveling in front of Lina.

"Hmm..." Lina started pondering. "...Nope! Flare Arrow!" Lina launched a flaming arrow at the bandit, burning him to a crisp. She approached him, picking him up by the front of his tunic. "Now then, you better tell me what you know about the Claire Bible, or things are gonna get a lot more painful for you!"

"Claire what? I have no idea what you're talking about! You just came here out of nowhere and started destroying everything! You're a monster! A demon!"

"What was that...! ?" Lina growled at the bandit, ready to smack him around some more.

"Lina!" Gourry's voice called out to her. She turned around, dropping the bandit on his back, and saw Gourry and the others arriving on the scene. "What the heck are you doing out here, in the middle of the night?"

"Um, well, you see... The sound of bad guys getting beaten to a pulp is the jingle of money to me! Can't let up on those outlaws and crooks, you know!" She paused when she realized her companions were not convinced. "Alright, fine! I... was looking for info on the Claire Bible." She was interrupted by the sound of someone clapping.

"My, my!" came a voice from nowhere. The group looked upwards to see a man with short violet hair, dressed in elaborate robes, perched atop the remains of a destroyed building. "I'm impressed at the lengths you go through to obtain information. As expected of the infamous bandit-hunter Lina Inverse." The man leapt off the edge, landing just in front of Lina, inches away from her face. "It was worth my while to secretly follow you here. Just so you know, I, too, am searching for the Claire Bible."

"Oh yeah?" Lina said, staring down the strange man. "And who are you supposed to be?"

"Ah, no worries. I'm not someone to be suspicious of. Allow me to introduce myself..." A big smile crossed his face as he declared joyfully, "I am Xellos, the Mysterious Priest! I come to you bearing information on the location of a manuscript of the Claire Bible! It just so happens that there is one such copy here in the vicinity of Atlas City!"

"What! ?" Zelgadis gasped. "Here? Are you sure?"

"I certainly am! In exchange for this information, I only ask that you allow me to have the manuscript when you are done with it."

"Okay, Xellos," Lina said, "start talking. I'm listening..."

"Very well then," Xellos grinned. "Listen closely, because I will only say this once..."

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MH, Park<strong>

Nagisa and Honoka arrived in the park, still looking for Porun and Seekun.

"Which way did they go?" Honoka asked, looking around.

"For being so small, they sure move pretty fast!" Nagisa remarked. She looked towards the river, and saw the mysterious girl, still holding the golden box. "Hey, isn't that the girl from the other day? The one that creepy guy was trying to snatch?" She looked to the left, and saw the man in the black overcoat approaching the girl. "Speaking of which...!"

"Found you again," the man said.

"You!" the girl gasped, stepping away from him. "Why are you following me? What do you want?"

"I'm just doing my job," the mercenary replied. "Don't even try to run, you won't get very far. Just come quietly, and I promise I won't hurt you."

"Hey you!" Nagisa shouted at him as she and Honoka ran inbetween him and the girl. "You just don't know when to quit, do you?"

"You two again?" The man reached for one of the swords strapped to his sides. "I saw your little stunt the other day. Now that I know you can fight, I'm only gonna say this once: get out of my way, or things are gonna get physical!"

"Are you with the Dusk Zone?" Honoka asked him. "What do you want with this girl?"

"Dusk Zone? I have no idea what you're talking about. As for the girl, I was just told to bring her back to my client. It looks like you have no intention of budging, so..." The mercenary reached for his other sword with his other hand. Before a fight could begin, he stopped, releasing his weapons, and sighed. "...Geez, I can't do it. Superpowers or no, I can't hurt children. It goes against my code as a professional mercenary." Just then, the skies began turning dark again. In the blink of an eye, Circulas appeared in midair, looming over the others. "What are you doing here?" the man asked Circulas.

"You are an incompetent fool," Circulas said to him. "You are allowing these two to impede your goal again, but I will now rectify that mistake!" He raised his arms in the air. "Come forth, Zakenna!" The ground began rumbling as the rocks along the river bank rose up into the air, mashing together, and forming into a humanoid shape, with the all-too-familiar gaping maw and bulging temple on its forehead.

"_Zakenna!_" the creature roared out.

"You backstabbing bastard!" the mercenary yelled at Circulas. "That monster from the other day was _your_ doing!"

"Destroy them all, Zakenna," Circulas commanded the monster, "starting with that worthless mercenary!" The Zakenna complied, swinging its giant stone fists at the man, who tumbled out of the way, reaching for his swords again.

"That's it, the gloves are off, now!" he said as he unsheathed his blades, holding one katana in each hand.

"Don't make me laugh," Circulas mocked him. "Your pathetic human weapons cannot possibly hope to harm pure darkness!"

"_Zakenna!_" The monster took another swing as the man leapt to the side and charged at it. Running up to the creature's legs, he took two quick swings with his blades. At first, it looked like nothing happened, but suddenly, the monster's leg was severed as it fell over, crashing into the river, pieces of rock breaking off its body.

"What! ?" Circulas was shocked. "Impossible!"

"Now then," the man said, pointing one of his blades at Circulas, "time to deal with you." Suddenly, the monster reached out and grabbed the swordsman, still fallen on its side. The rocks along the bank gathered, rebuilding the monster's destroyed leg and damaged body as it stood up, slowly crushing the man. The man struggled to break free, but before he could, the Zakenna slammed him into the ground with incredible force, knocking him unconscious. After showing no movement, it tossed the man aside like a ragdoll. Satisfied with the results, it turned its attention to Nagisa and Honoka.

"We have to transform, Honoka!" Nagisa said. Honoka glanced at the girl behind them, then back at Nagisa.

"But, what about her? If we transform here..."

"We can't worry about that right now! Let's do it, Honoka!" Honoka nodded as the two joined hands.

"Dual Aurora Wave!"

"Huh?" The mysterious girl looked confused as Nagisa and Honoka transformed before her eyes into Cure Black and Cure White. "I don't understand... what in the world is happening...?"

"So, you show yourselves..." Circulas said. "The legendary warriors, Pretty Cure..."

"Who are you?" Black demanded. "Why do you want this girl so badly?"

"She is a threat. For the sake of resurrecting our master, the Dark King, the girl must be destroyed!"

"As if I would let that happen!" Black leapt into the air, lunging at Circulas. She delivered a flying kick, which he blocked with little effort, striking her back to the ground.

"Your struggle is futile. The power of light fades with every passing moment. Now is the time to crush it once and for all with the power of darkness! Zakenna! Finish them!"

"_Zakenna!_" The monster began grappling with the two fighters. Everytime they landed a blow on the creature, a piece of its body breaks off, but quickly grows back. Circulas held out his hand, firing blasts of wind at Black and White while they were distracted. The attacks struck, sending them flying in different directions. At this time, Seekun and Porun arrived in the park, watching the battle slowly turn in the enemy's favor.

"Trouble, trouble!" Seekun said, flitting about.

"Pretty Cure-popo..." Porun looked worried.

"Black, hang in there-mepo!" Mepple encouraged her.

"Don't worry," Black said, getting up from the ground. "We'll beat them back, and protect our world and the Garden of Light!"

"White, you can do it-mipo!" Mipple cheered her partner on.

"I'll do my best!" White said, springing back to her feet. "We'll never lose to the darkness!"

'Why are they doing this...?' the girl thought as she silently watched the events unfold before her. 'Why are letting themselves be hurt... for me, for this "Garden of Light"...' She felt her body tensing up. 'I... I want to save them... but I can't do anything...'

'_You have it too,_' the voice she heard before returned. _'There is something you can do.'_ She was not the only one hearing this gentle voice. Porun looked around, confused.

'_I am sure the power is there, within you._' The voice seemed to addressing the both of them. '_The one thing you can do..._'

"I have to save Pretty Cure-popo!" Porun shouted as he rushed towards the battle, running straight for the girl. "Show everyone the way to the future-popo!" He leapt towards her. Startled, the girl dropped the box in her hands and caught Porun, as they both began glowing with a radiant golden light. Just then, the Elder arrived at the park, hobbling with his walking stick with the Guardian riding on his back.

"Th, this is...!" the Elder gasped.

"What's happening to them! ?" White asked. Porun jumped into the air, transforming into a device resembling a compact, and landed back in the girl's hand.

"I've awakened-popo!" Porun said. "Combine our powers, and save Pretty Cure-popo!" The girl was speechless, then, as if by instinct, she shouted out loud at the top of her lungs.

"Luminous! Shining Stream!" The glow around her intensified as it lit up the entire area, blinding everyone. When the light faded, the girl had transformed. She wore a flowing pink dress, similar to Black and White's outfits. Her hair had grown out, gleaming with a golden shine in twin ponytails. "Sparkling Life, Shiny Luminous! Heart of Light and Stones of Light... for all to become one!"

"She's awakened..." Circulas said. "I must end this now!" He landed on the ground, and lunged towards the girl.

"No!" Black and White tried to reach her, but the Zakenna stepped in front of them, blocking the way.

"Die!" Circulas pulled his fist back, ready to strike.

"Rock... Buster! !" Out of nowhere, a bolt of energy shot out. Circulas screeched to a halt, the blast striking the ground just in front of him. He looked up to see Maria headed straight for him, leg extended. "Haaah!" Maria delivered a swift kick to his face, bouncing off and landing between him and the girl. Her right arm changed back to normal as the braces over her hands flipped over into a pair of knuckles. "Are you two okay?" Maria asked Black and White.

"Maria! ?" Black was surprised to see her.

"What are you doing here?" White asked.

"I can explain later!" Maria said, turning her attention back to Circulas. "I can hold him off if you can handle the Zakenna!" She charged at him, swinging fast and hard.

"Annoying child!" Circulas grunted as he exchanged blows with her.

"Now's your chance-popo!" Porun said to the girl. "Combine your power with Pretty Cure-popo!" The girl raised her arm in the air, and a heart-shaped device appeared as she grabbed it. A wave of energy poured out of the device, sweeping over Cure Black and White.

"Rising courage!" Black shouted out.

"Overflowing hope!" White added.

"With the embrace of sparkling light!" the girl also shouted.

"Extreme..."

"Luminario!" A heart-shaped form appeared before Black and White, and with a thrust of their arms, a golden explosion poured out of it, engulfing the Zakenna. Beams of rainbow-colored light began shooting out of the monster's body as it exploded into a shower of glittering gold particles, leaving nothing behind, not even the Zakenna's spirit.

"Tch!" Circulas pushed Maria back with a blast of wind, and leapt into the air. "This isn't over...!" In a flash, he vanished as the skies became bright again.

"Maria!" White cried as she ran up to her, grabbing her hands. "It's so great to finally see you again!"

"I know!" Maria said. "I thought we would never get to be together like this again! I just wish it was under better conditions... you see..."

"Pretty Cura!" the Elder called out to the girls as he and the Guardian approached, with Seekun close behind.

"That's 'Cure'!" Nagisa corrected him. "Pretty 'Cure'!"

"That's what I said, Pretty Cura. I can hardly believe it... this girl, she...!" Before he finished, the Elder noticed the golden box on the ground, picking it up. "Oh, this is...!"

"The Queen Chairect! The Queen's heart! You've found it!" Seekun finished for him.

"Eh? Really?" Black gasped.

"Queen's heart?" Maria was lost in the conversation. "What's going on here?" Black, White, and the Elder explained to Maria the events that have transpired in their world.

* * *

><p>"The Queen of Light is gone! ?" Maria gasped. "This just keeps getting worse..."<p>

"Worse?" White asked. "What do you mean?"

"Chrono and the Time-Space Administration Bureau brought me here to find you. Nanoha was attacked in her world, and we need your help!"

"But why us? I thought the Bureau wanted to keep people from other worlds separated so it wouldn't cause any trouble?"

"I'm not really sure myself... but if I can help in any way, then I will! I won't just stand idle and do nothing!"

"That's the spirit!" a voice shouted out. The three girls looked up to see a small fairy with fiery red hair in a white toga riding down on the back of a pigeon. "That burning passion is what's important!"

"Pation!" Seekun exclaimed, recognizing the fairy.

"Hey, Seekun!" The red-headed pixie noticed the Chairect. "Ah, I see you found our little roost!"

"Roost?" Maria asked.

"The Chairect is where we Heartiels can rest," Seekun explained. "We can wait inside it while you look for the rest of our friends!"

"Me first!" Pation jumped off the pigeon's back, and into the small hole in the center of the box. A red sphere appeared in one of the sections around the edge, an image of a torch appearing inside the sphere.

"I'll be heading inside, too. We'll be waiting until you find the remaining ten Heartiels!" Seekun followed Pation, entering the Chairect as an orange sphere with the image of a telescope within it.

"Chrono is expecting me to call in soon," Maria said, pulling out her communication device. "So, how about it? Can you two help?"

"I don't know..." Black looked at the mysterious girl, who had changed back to normal, holding Porun in her hands. "If we leave, those guys from the Dusk Zone might come for her again..."

"...Then take her with you," the Elder interrupted. "I have a feeling she will have a very important role to play in the days to come. If she comes with you, then you should be able to protect her."

"True, but what if she doesn't want to go?" White asked.

"...I'll go with you," the girl said to them. "I want to know... why do I have this power, and how I ended up here..."

"Are you sure?" The girl nodded in response.

"Then it's settled!" Black walked up to the girl, offering her hand. "I'm Nagisa Misumi!"

"My name is Honoka Yukishiro!" White added. "What's your name?"

"...Hikari... Hikari Kujou."

"Hikari? That's the same as my last name!" Maria said. "Maria Hikari!"

"You girls should be on your way, then," the Guardian said. "The Elder and I have been away from the Garden of Light for too long, and we have to return. The other fairies will be worried, especially in these times."

"If everything's taken care of, then let's get going!"

"Wait," Hikari said. She ran over to the man in the black overcoat, who was still unconscious from being attacked. "He tried to fight that monster from before, tried to protect us. We should help him, too."

"But he was trying to kidnap you, twice!" Black objected. "He might be working for the Dusk Zone!"

"Well, we can't just leave him here," Maria said. "We'll bring him with us. I'll ask Chrono what we should do." Black and White picked up the man, while Maria carefully grabbed his swords. "Chrono, are you there?" she spoke into the communicator. "Nagisa and Honoka agreed to help, and we're ready to be transported... and we're bringing two others with us."

* * *

><p><strong>Sector MH, Dusk Manor<strong>

"More outsiders aiding the Queen's servants, just like last time..." Circulas muttered, tending to his wounds. "The others must come soon, I will not be able to defeat all of them at this rate..." Just then, the front doors swung open, and a little boy, with blond hair and violet eyes, stepped into the manor, looking lost. Circulas and the butler Zakenna immediately knelt before the child.

"Welcome home... master," they greeted the boy in unison.

* * *

><p><strong>Sector RE, Atlas City<strong>

"Are you sure we can trust that Xellos guy, Lina?" Gourry asked, looking a little concerned as he, Lina, Amelia, and Zelgadis returned to the city proper.

"Of course not," Lina replied. "Who in their right mind would trust someone who calls themselves 'the Mysterious Priest'? The only reason I heard him out is because it's better than going into this search blind."

"I'll believe him when I see that manuscript with my own two eyes," Zelgadis added. "To think it might be somewhere in this very city..."

"Stop right there, criminal scum!" someone shouted at the group. Suddenly, Lina and her friends were surrounded by a cadre of armed soldiers. "We've finally found you, Lina Inverse! You and your accomplices will disarm yourselves and surrender, immediately! You're all under arrest!"

"Hey, hey, hey!" Lina objected. "Who do you think you are! ? Under arrest for what! ?"

"For the crimes of kidnapping... and murder!" A crowd of citizens began gathering around to see what the commotion was about. Among the crowd, Signum quietly watched as the soldiers drew closer towards Lina.


End file.
